by Jeffrey C. Smith
Philadelphia: Pen & Sword / Casemate, 2020. Pp. xxviii, 284+.
Illus., maps, plates, gloss., personae, notes, biblio., index. $34.95. ISBN: 1526790459
The Wilyest of the Athenians
Although Themistocles (c. 525-459 B.C.) was among of the most famous Athenians, well-known as the founder of the Athenian Navy, the architect of the defeat of Xerxes’ invasion of Greece in 480-479 B.C., and the man who created the Athenian “thalassocracy”. Yet has long lacked an English language biography, an oversight now filled.
Jeffrey Smith, who teaches ancient history and humanities, sets Themistocles within his times and culture. The man emerges as adept at politics, diplomacy, strategy, tactics, deception, and more, with an ability to understand the perspective of his enemies and to see potential alternative outcomes of events and decisions. As Smith gives us the life and works of Themistocles, he also offers a look at geopolitics and war making in the period and the complexities of Athenian and Greek society.
In the course of the book we get numerous examples of Themistocles’ wiliness as well, from slipping false information to the Persians that set up the great naval victory at Salamis to he subsequent reconciliation with them, after falling from grace at home, and how he even used his death to manipulate the Persian King of Kings, by securing from him a promise not to launch a new invasion of Greece, unless Themistocles accompanied him.
Themistocles: The Powerbroker of Athens is a valuable read for anyone with an interest in the “Golden Age” of Greece, or the arts of state craft and leadership.
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